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Universities and globalisation

6 April 2005

The director of the London School of Economics and Political Science discussed how international trends affect universities when he spoke late last month at a seminar organised by the Monash Institute for the Study of Global Movements.

Professor Gill Palmer with Sir Howard Davies.

In his address, 'Universities and globalisation', Sir Howard Davies said modern tertiary education was becoming part of a competitive international environment. In this environment, he said, universities increasingly relied upon fees from overseas students for their financial viability, creating tension for aspiring domestic students. Sir Howard also said quantitative measures of inter-university performance were being increasingly used as triggers for allocating funding. The more successful universities were in those tests, the richer they became, Sir Howard said.

However, he added, smaller universities that offered teaching in a narrow range of disciplines -- such as the London School of Economics -- also did well because of their reputations for excellence.

The seminar, organised in conjunction with the Productivity Commission, was held on Thursday 24 March in Melbourne.

Monash attendees included the vice-chancellor Professor Richard Larkins, Business and Economics faculty dean Professor Gill Palmer and the director of the Monash Institute for the Study of Global Movements, Professor John Nieuwenhuysen.

Prior to his current appointment, Sir Howard was chairman of the Financial Services Authority in the UK, deputy governor of the Bank of England and director general of the Confederation of British Industry.